Elastic-fi



R. H. RICE.

ELASTIC FLUID TURBINE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 19. 1911.

1,325,208. Patented Dec. 16,1919.

Inventor. IQIChar-d H. Rica UNITED srATEs" PATENT ension,

RICHARD H. n ce, or LYNN, mssacnusnr'rs, sssrcnon TO GENERAL meme COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK,

Application filed November 19, 1917. Serial No. 202,6 88.

To all whomz't may concern: f

Be it known that I, RIc-frARn H. RICE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lynn, county of Essex, State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Elastic-FluidTurblues, of which the following is a specification. r

The present invention relates to elastic fluid turbines, and particularly toturbines ofthe type comprising a plurality of disks or wheels mounted on ashaft and carrying suitable buckets upon the periphery. With such turbines it is important that the disks or wheels be made as light as possible in order to reduce the weight of the machine thereby reducing its size, and also the cost of manufacture. In, addition, by making the wheels or disks as thin as possible, par ticularly at the hubs, the distance between bearings may be reduced, or a larger, number of stages may be put in in the same space. I

A desirable form of turbine wheel, due to its cheapness to manufacture, is one pressed up from sheet material, but, so far as I am aware, up to the present time no practical commercial wheel of this type has been made, at least for turbines of substantial size. This has been due primarily to the fact thatthere was not sufiicient material in the hub of the wheel to firmly anchor it to the shaft so that it would withstand the stresses set q the wheels to up due to centrifugal action, and to the temperature changes which are continually going on in the turbine due to fluctuation in load and variations in the vacuum. 'As

is obvious, the wheels will respond much more quickly to temperature changes than will the heavy shaft, and as a consequence there is very unequal expansion of the wheels and shaft, and if the wheels are rigidly connected to the shaft stresses of a substantial value are set up in the hubs. If the hubs are made too 1i ht these stresses may cause istort and possibly loo'sen on the shaft.: y,

The object of my invention is to provide an improved wheel mit of expansion due to temperature changes without causing the wheel to distort or loosen on the shaft 0r, "in other words, to provide a wheel in which stresses in the ub, due to unequal expansion, will be to a .great extent eliminated...

Specification of Letters Patent.

'my invention.

of the plates.

structure which will per- Patented Dec. 16, 1319.

I For. a consideration of what I believe to be novel and my invention, attention is directed to the accompanying specification and the claims appended thereto.

Inthe drawing, the figure is a sectional view through a turbine wheel embodying In carrying out my invention, I 'provide the turbine wheel adjacentthe hub with, an annular oflset which serves as a yieldmg connection between the wheel and the" hub to permit.the' wheel to expand due to temperature changes independently of the hub so as to relieve the stresses which would otherwise be set up in the hub.

Due to this arrangement I am enabled to construct a turbine wheel by material. v I Referring to the drawing, a turbine wheel 1s shown comprising two plates 5 and 6, each provided with an offset 7 which preferably extends at about right angles to the plane pressing it up from sheet that each plate-comprises an inner portion andan outer portion with a yielding connectlon between them, the yieldin connec- This means,'in substance,

tion being the offset portion of t e wheel. I

The hub of the wheel is-formed by providing the plates at their central .opening with flanges 8 over which are forced rings 9 whichare riveted in place, as indicated at 10. These rings 9 may beforced into place with a sufiiciently tight fit to slightly distort the flanges 8, and after being riveted into place the central opening. of the wheel may be bored out to proper dimensions. The plates 5 and 6 are held in spaced relation at their peripheries by spacing members 11 to which the plates are riveted, as

indicated at 12. 13 indicates the turbine buckets which may be fastened to the wheel in any suitable manner, and 14 indicates a shaft on which the wheel is mounted.

The structure has the advantage that itis cheap to manufacture, light in weight, and

at the same time sufliciently strong and rigid to withstand all stresses centrifugal force, This is in a great that the stresses set up in the hub by -unequal expansion will not be large due to the olfsets in the plates permitting the wheel to expand independently of the hub to such an extent as to relieve the hub iof such set up' it due to and unequal expansion.

stresses.

measure due to the fact- In accordance with theprovisions. of the patent statutes, I have described the princi le of operation of my invention, together wlth the apparatus which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof;

7 but. I desire tohave it understood that the apparatus shown is only illustrative and that the invention can be carried out by other means. Y

, What I claim 1. A turbine wheel comprising two .plates fastened together at their central parts to form a hub portion, buckets carried by the rims of said plates, said plates each having annular oflsets adjacent the hub portion to form a yielding connection whereby the radially outer portion of the wheel may ex 'pand substantially independently of the hub.

2. A turbine wheel comprising a plate having a flange at its center. and a ring pressed over the flange to form a wheel hub,

said plate having an annular offset adas new and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States, is: jof the wheel may expand substantially in,

dependently ofthe hub. Y

4. A turbine wheel pressed up from sheet 1 jacent the hub to ermit the radially outer portion of the w eel to expand substantially independently of the hub.

3. A turbine wheel pressed up from sheet material, comprising two plates, each provided with an ofiset adjacent the hub, said plates being arranged with the oifsets facin in opposite directions and toward each ot er, and meansfastening said plates: to-

gether whereby the radially outer portion material, comprising two plates having outturned' flanges at their centers and rin pressed over them to form hubs, each of said plates being formed with an annular ofiset adjacent the hub, and buckets carried by said plates. p

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 13th day of November, 1917.

. RICHARD H. RICE. 

